PALO ALTO, Calif. — The New England Patriots finished their on-field preparations for Super Bowl LX with a nearly 90-minute practice at Stanford Stadium.
Head coach Mike Vrabel tried to keep many of the team’s typical Friday practice traditions in place while also getting his team ready for the unique situations his team will encounter on Sunday.
To keep things normal, the Patriots finished the stretching period just before 1 p.m. to the sound of the song “Friday” by Sir Charles Jones, just as they have throughout the season during their Friday practices in Foxborough. At 1:30 p.m., players gathered in the end zone to watch eight of the team’s assistant coaches face off in four rounds of one-on-one drills. Offensive assistants Riley Larkin, who played QB at John Carroll, and Chuckie Keeton, a former college quarterback at Utah State, each caught touchdowns that led to loud cheers from the team’s offensive players. Vrabel celebrated Keeton’s catch against special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer with a demonstrative fist pump and a short dance.
These coach-vs.-coach battles have become a fun staple of Vrabel’s final practice session each week.
“It’s Friday, we’re 48 hours before the game, and that’s just how we normally operate,” Vrabel said.
But Vrabel doesn’t typically send his team off the field and into the locker room an hour into practice like he did Friday. After a special teams session, Vrabel blew his whistle at 1:52 p.m. and motioned players to leave the field. Players spent 14 minutes inside while Bad Bunny songs (among others) played over the stadium speakers.
Practice concluded with a final set of team drills for the starting offense and defense against the scout team. Vrabel gathered his team for a long final huddle, and then smaller groups of players split off for their own huddles or final individual work. Quarterback Drake Maye, tight end Hunter Henry and receiver Efton Chism III were the final players to leave the field.
“We still have time to prepare. There’s a lot of time to fine-tune things and to get themselves physically and mentally ready to play, but I also want them to be able to enjoy their time with their families and people they care about,” Vrabel said.
Linebackers Robert Spillane and Harold Landry III were both limited in Friday’s practice and are officially listed as questionable for the Super Bowl. Spillane, who is dealing with an ankle injury, did not practice on Wednesday, and Landry, who is recovering from a knee injury, missed Thursday’s practice.
“They’re doing everything they can to be ready for the football game and we’ll see how they respond from practice today,” Vrabel said.
Defensive tackle Joshua Farmer, who is on the injured reserve list with a hamstring injury but designated to return to practice, is also listed as questionable. No other players, including Maye, have an injury designation for the game vs. Seattle.
The Patriots will return to Stanford Stadium for a team picture on Saturday afternoon.
–Pro Football Writers of America
